Thursday, December 22, 2011

Mid-December Barefoot Run

I have to say that I am certainly loving the weather this year. Normally by this time we have tons of snow and -25° C cold snaps but this year it has been pretty mild. Weird considering how earlier this winter I heard a report that it was supposed to be a long and cold winter. I'll certainly be grateful for the weather we have so far either way.

Anyways so Monday comes along and I'm set to run outside. I have all my cold weather gear with me just like normal, however when lunch time comes I take a look an the temperature is a nice balmy 7-8°C outside. Lovely. I can shed a couple extra layers of clothing. So I head out wearing just my base layer top, base layer tights, bondiband and water shoes. No socks. Woot!!! I run for about a mile and I get a thought. It's pretty nice out, why not take off my shoes. Off come my shoes. The ground is a little cold but it felt so great to get out barefoot again. Even with the coldness my feet feel alive and loving every sensation. I'm running along the south side of the Bow River downtown and the pathway is clear of snow, just a couple of small icy patches. Absolutely lovely. Cross the river and discover that the City is much more deligent about putting gravel down on the pathway on the north side of the river. Silly city. I joked on facebook that they should be more considerate of all the people running barefoot along the pathways. In the middle of december. I guess we can't really expect that from them.
So nice!!!

I decided what the hey and ran along the gravel for a while. Uncomfortable but not really painful at first. Much better than what it used to be. Nice. I had to finally put on my water shoes again once it started getting painful. No need to be a hero, I like being able to walk without raw stinging feet. ;) All in all I got in about 6 miles total, with probably 4 miles of that barefoot. In the middle of December. Never thought I would be doing that before. I certainly envy other runners in much fairer climates who can run outside year round without fear of frostbite. Glad to have a nice day during the winter to enjoy. Here is to taking advantage of many more days like that.
Although I did manage to get a blood blister on my toe. Hazard of cold weather. Cold = less feeling and easier to hurt yourself without knowing.

1 comment:

  1. I should keep an eye out for you on the Bow River pathways, guess it'll be easier to spot you in the spring/ summer though.

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